Hikky's Daughter
by Paru Cafe
Summary: Kaito moves in with his adopted daughter, Yuki. If we forget that he is a former hikkikomori and that Hatsune Miku decides to socialize him, life goes on. But the past of Kaito and Yuki is obscure and sad... Meiko/Kaito, Miku/Kaito, slight Luka/Miku. HIATUS.
1. Cyan Tornado

**A/N : **Hello people~ ! It's my first time I publishing a story all in english, and there must be errors. But I have **Code03x1 : **my fantastic beta-reader who corrected me and did a **great job**. Go check her stories as well~

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><p><strong>Title : <strong>Hikky's Daughter

**Rating : ****T**, for Miku and Rin's bad potty mouth, sexual innuendo, misscarriage, shut-in, cutting, violence, car accident.

**Pairing : **First - MikuxKaito. Then **MeikoxKaito** and other pairings, like GakupoxLuka. But I advertise : there will be heart-breaking heartache, and **shojo-ai **(MikuxLuka)

**Category : **Family/Friendship & Romance/Hurt/Comfort

**Disclaimer : **I still don't own VOCALOID, even tough my efforts.

**Note : **The main characters are **Kaito Shion** and **Yuki Kaai**, and it's categorized as **Family/Romance**. No romance between the daughter and the father. And of course no children abuse, even if there will be some fights...

**Note 2 : **_**Hikikomori**_, (literally "pulling inward, being confined", i.e., "acute social withdrawal") is a Japanese term to refer to the phenomenon of reclusive adolescents or young adults who have chosen to withdraw from social life, often seeking extreme degrees of isolation and confinement because of various personal and social factors in their lives. The term _hikikomori_ refers to both the sociological phenomenon in general as well as to people belonging to this societal group. (From Wikipedia) _Hikky_ is the slang diminutive of _Hikkikomori_.

Alright, I think this is all ? So enjoy please~

**Paru-ch4n.**

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><p> <strong>Hikky's Daughter ~<strong>

Chapter One

_'Cyan Tornado'_

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><p>Kaito grunted and scratched his cheek. He stopped, lifting a heavy box in his arms. Looking from a distance you could see a man with blue hair, sweat soaked T-shirt, and was unloading a van and making round trips between the sidewalk and a packet of brown boxes. Beside him, a little girl frolicked joyfully; black hair tied in a duvet, dressed in a red dress, a unique little spot that danced undulated along the air above the hot tarmac. It was about eleven o'clock, and the seriously backbreaking work was wearing Kaito out. Thankfully, about forty minutes later, the man and the girl had finished their work and now rested on the stone steps that decorated the house they just moved into. Kaito walked around the house, opening the windows wide and coming into the small courtyard. The girl dressed in red –who had just ran behind him- stared in amazement at the birch trees bleached by time.<p>

"Yuki!" he called, "Come and eat!"

"Yes!" replied the child, waltzing towards him.

He came and sat in the shade of a tree, two plastic plates in their hands. From his pockets he drew two white plastic forks. Taking out a box of canned salad, he shared equally among plates, which were now sitting in front of him. Yuki made a strange face and began to eat without really rushing. The fact that it was oily and disgusting was not discussed. She doesn't finish her plate, but the neutral expression Kaito made makes her understand that it doesn't matter. She ran to the cooler, which the quiet man planted in the house, and returned with an ice cream and a small water bottle. She took a long sip of water while Kaito separated the frozen blueberries in half and handed her half.

"Can we buy apples?" she asked, sucking the Eskimo.

"Hmm, when I know where is the market town" Kaito replied.

Their life goes like that for years already. Being gruff and unsociable, he speaks almost to no one except to the six-year child, Kaai Yuki, a childhood friend's daughter. He found a job that corresponded to that place, and Kaito moved here, obviously not forgetting to bring along Yuki. All he wants right now is calm. He doesn't want to build a relationship or anything: just take care of this child, peacefully, seeing her grows, change, get married... He sighed and took off his sandals, stretching his toes out in the sun. Yuki lay in the grass and laid her head on the belly of her father, all the while holding a small notebook in hand. She cannot write well but still trains hard. After all, practice makes perfect!

Where they moved to, the cicadas were singing all the time. A chime, forgotten above the door by the former owners, tinkled with crystal clear sound. Kaito yawned and closed his eyes, enjoying the shade of the tree- even surrounded by the stifling heat. He likes this place. The few cars that pass only signalled their presence by a faint sound. He felt sleep prevail, and without resistance, was induced in the realm of dreams.

"Sir?"

Kaito growled before opening his eyes with difficulty. Above him, he sees something of turquoise, and, eyes still covered with plasma, which blurs the vision, he believes that it is the sky and falls asleep. Well, until a hand on his shoulder and shakes him.

"What?" he unhappily muttered.

"Sir, wake up..."

He got up, rubbed his eyes, sat cross-legged on the grass and glanced at his watch, which indicated quarter past one. In front of him, a young woman, twenties, with hair tied in a duvet and cyan eyes of a lighter turquoise, stared at him with curiosity. She was dressed in a little blue top and a black skirt, her legs waxed in the open air. There was a lack of footwear on her small feet.

"Sir, are you okay?"  
>She had a little high-pitched voice, but it was pleasant to listen to.<p>

"Where is she?" he asked abruptly, realizing that Yuki is not there.

"Uh, you're talking about the little girl in red dress? She's playing on the other side of the garden."

"Yuki!" he called.  
>Quickly, the child arrived, frolicking and looking at him quizzically. He made a motion to tell her to go play and she nodded before skipping off.<p>

"Sorry to wake you, sir," replied the young woman, "My name is Hatsune Miku."

"What… What do you want?" he muttered.

"I am charged to patrol, and gather information about the neighbourhood," she said.

"Hmm…" conceded Kaito. "Sit down. Wanna have something to drink?"

"Of course" Miku replied, smiling. "Somethin' fresh if possible"

He went to get a beer in the cooler that sat outside. She mumbled that she would prefer a vegetable juice but he ignored it, uncapping glass bottles with a flick of his wrist. She then left a small notebook and pen pockets of her skirt and noted something. Inquisitive eyes frowned at him slightly.

"So ... Name, age please?"

"Shion Kaito, 29 years"

"Occupation?"

"I'm a writer."

"Ah? What kind of books do you write?" she asked, looking curious.

He shrugged. "I do not really know. I'm eclectic."

"In this case, can you give me a book or something on which you worked?"

"Um ... I've written some horror books, for a collection of short stories, and I run a small company that makes music textbooks."

"Oh. You work mostly at home, right?" she asked.

Kaito nodded quickly. "That's it." Also nodding, the teal haired woman took a sip of the beer in her hand and promptly dug her toes in the grass.

"Your family situation?" Miku continues.

"I am a single man in charge of a little girl."

"The small-Yuki, isn't it? Can I get her age?"

"It's Kaai Yuki. She is six years old."

"Hmm. Your place of birth?"

"I was born in my house in Okinawa."

"And your daughter?"

"In a Tokyo maternity."

"Which school will she go to here?"

"At the Taiyo primary school"

"Perfect" Miku said, tapping her pen to the notebook and smiling slightly. "Thank you for your patience."

"It's nothing, Hatsune-san."

"Tell me, Shion-san, will you install everything by yourself?"

Surprised, Kaito blinked before nodding.

"C'mon, it's not reasonable Shion-san!" She exclaimed. "You know, it's a quiet town, and almost everyone knows each other. I have friends who will be happy to help!"

"Listen, I..." he tried to get a word in.

"Don't argue!" Miku exclaimed, laughing. "It will be a great way to get acquainted with everyone! I'll come too… but mostly for cooking. I'm not endowed with a screwdriver pots."

"Hatsune-san, I do not think it's a good idea, uh, I..."

"Well, it's decided then! We will be there tomorrow at nine o'clock! Good day!" she cut off by waving good-bye.

She proceeded to disappear behind the gate, leaving Kaito stunned. He massaged his temples and managed to stumble into the beer bottle she has not finished which was deposited on the grass.

"... Meet people..."

Suddenly he began to hyperventilate and collapsed to the ground. Yuki approached, and seeing his father again in a crisis, she let out several shouts and then takes the paper bag she constantly keeps in her pocket. With safe gestures, she calms Kaito by rubbing his back. After a good number of pats, he began to calm down. Eyes bloodshot and filled with tears, mingled with his gasping breaths. Yuki then clutched her father in her arms. He strokes her hair as he whispered, "Everything will be fine..."

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><p><strong>End of chapter one... <strong>

**Reviews makes me happy. They are like flowers : pretty.**


	2. I want a Carton Man for Xmas

**A/N : **Here's chapter two ! Again, thanks a lot to **Code03x1**, FANTASTIC beta-reader- and also thanks for your lovely comment and for support me- I'm such a burden *sigh*

**Rika-Sempai : **Of course. I'm glad you liked the story, and I hope you'll enjoy this second chapter !

**Enjoy !**

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><p>He wanted to scream. He wanted to tear his hair in frustration. If he could, he would close his eyes, cowering and sobbing, but the only thing he could do was stand up and face the world to take the little trembling form in his arms.<p>

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><p>Kaito woke from his dream, fists clenching painfully at the sheets of his futon. Immediately, he realized the absence of Yuki beside him. Throwing off the cover, he noticed that he had not undressed before sleeping. Yuki surely removed his sandals while he slept. Kaito scratched his cheek; a rather old habit he had, and felt a beard crunching under his fingers.<p>

_When you'll meet people, watch to be well-dressed, understood?_

Kaito shrugged and tried to erase the face that floated in front of his eyes. Even so, the constant reminder echoed at the back of his mind, making him grumble. He went to the bathroom before grabbing a razor he had left on the sink the night before.

_It makes me happy that you made it, Kai. You'll see, we'll be there to help you ..._

"Shut up" he muttered between his teeth, the razor blade against his cheek.

_You are strong, and you'll get them. You'll be so handsome that even Mei will fall in love with you._

His hand jerked suddenly, causing a gash on his cheek, blood flowing from the wound. The pale reflection in the mirror seemed to come alive.

_Ah! Please don't steal her from me. Not on my wedding day, eh!_

"Shut…"

_We're buddies, isn't that right? Best friends!_

"SHUT UP!" he yelled, violently throwing the razor at the ground.

"Ah ... s-sorry..."

Kaito whipped around to see Yuki in the doorway, frightened by her father's behavior. He stared at her for a little and promptly turned his back.

"Excuse me ... I won't…" the little girl whispered.

"What?" he blurted astonished.

"I won't buy any apples this morning, that's all..."

"No, no, go ahead. I wasn't speaking to you."

The girl raised an eyebrow but said nothing. By now, she was used to that kind of attitude from Kaito. She dusted off her red dress a bit before heading to the kitchen.

The hatch was covered with a white cloth, to protect the paint. On the walls with thatched roofs were resting several scales. The tiled floor was not finished. PVC windows were currently covered with stains that were still visible and the mastic was put in an inelegant manner. It should be cut as finely as possible. Yuki then rejoiced- she loved to file the edges of the sealant. She sat down at the hatch, resting on a metal chair, before reaching for a small box of tea. Kaito appeared behind her and put down his kettle and sugar.

"Such a hot day!" she said with a pout. "We should take our breakfast outside."

"Let's do that." Kaito said it abruptly, as whenever he wanted something. Yuki smiled and nodded, handing the teapot to her father and leaving laden with bowls, and some toast. She ran down the porch steps and moved under the tree where she had eaten the day before with Kaito. He arrived in a zigzag approach, giving Yuki time to examine the man this morning. He was tall and lanky, never quite right, and still hunched up, which meant we could see how seldom that his square shoulders were graceful, how thin and yet elegantly muscled he was. His unkempt electric blue hair, in spikes, directed towards the left, hid his royal blue look, cold and tense. An angular jaw and aquiline nose made him charming. With every step, his Adam's apple bobbed up and down which drew attention to his neck a little.

Yuki only knew how Kaito was stunning.

If only he was not so tasteless in his style... Seriously: a T-Shirt with "ICE CREAM" written on it, military shorts, and flip flops with socks? Not to mention he was _**so**_anti-social. Yuki sighed and laid the things down. Her father sat a little closer to her than usual.

"What time is it?" she chirped.

Kaito looked up to the sky and gazed for a moment the clouds.

"With the position of the sun, about nine hundred hours."

Yuki smiled again: she had always found cool to know that his father telling time just by looking at the sky, night and day.

"Are you working today?"

He turned his head slowly towards her and shook his head slowly.

"Today I'm repairing the house."

"How long it will take?"

"Alone, about two months."

"B ... but what about your work?"

"It can wait, it's my vacation."

She shook her head. Kaito was working on a new story, called "Camera Shy" from what she had unscrambled from the complicated katakana.  
>Suddenly, something clicked in her mind.<p>

"But that girl with turquoise hair! Didn't she say she'd come with friends?"

Kaito's eyes widened.

"M... meet people..."

"I-It's okay!"

He lifted a shivering hand to his cheek and touched the cut caused by the razor.  
>It would be a bit complicated.<p>

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><p>Miku walked, frolicking in the horrible heat with hands behind her back, holding a handbag. She had a bandanna on her head while leaving her hair- tied in quilts- fluttering in the wind. Her light dress of white linen moved undulated, revealing half of her legs hidden by leggings. The heat turned her cheeks red. She cast a glance at her watch, which currently showed nine fifteen. Behind her, ten people were walking, each with various hair colours. All were chatting cheerily, sometimes pulling on the sleeves of their T-shirts, and all which have a thin film of sweat on their wrists and necks.<p>

"Oï!" Miku bellowed, turning.

"Miku, we're two feet from you, do not scream like that!" said a short and green-haired girl, who was pulling back diving goggles on her forehead.  
>Miku smiled a little, and put her hands around her mouth.<p>

"To get to the new neighbor's house, we'll do the same as before!"

A young woman with pink hair sighed and rolled her eyes, although a discreet smile lit her face.

"Go on with sprint! From here!"

"Yeah!" shouted a tall man with purple hair that hung down to his back.  
>Miku stretched out her legs and bent her back to the starting position, and watched intently as the others sit side by side in horizontal line.<p>

"What do we win?" asked the same man.

"The right to kiss Rin everywhere!"

"WHAT!" roared the blonde, certainly the so-called Rin.  
>"I don't want to race," sighed a boy who looked like the latter, surely his twin.<p>

"No, no, no, Len-_chan_" replied the man with purple hair. I know you want to-"

"Absolutely not! And don't call me Len-chan!"

" ... So you stay."

Len winced and growled. The green-haired girl laughed.

"Okay!" Miku made without waiting for an answer. "Ready? Go!"

The ground was trampled by twenty feet of athletes.

One minute fifty and seconds later, Miku arrived first at Kaito's home, hands on hips and smile victorious, closely followed by two men, one with long purple hair and another with short pink hair framing his face seriously. Rin arrived, followed by Len. Both were panting, exhausted from the sprint.

"Really, such bad stamina" Miku sighed, smiling.

"And I wonder where you found all this energy?" Len muttered sarcastically.

"Say, where is Luka?" interrupted the man with purple hair.

"In the back" Rin said.

"Weird," stated the second man with the pink hair. "Usually she runs faster than Miku."

"Don't worry Yuma; she must just be lazy..."

Sounds strides attracted their attention and they turned their gaze to the origin of the noise. The sun cut out the silhouette of woman with long pink hair who arrived, jogging, her heavy breasts swaying according to her movements. The stares of all the men and Miku on her 'attributes' that moved in rhythm made her blush deeply.

"Go to hell, wicked band," she hissed passing by them. "Especially you, Miku."

The latter smiled before pestering her. "I said sprint, not jog, Luka- oh, I see, you're _indisposed_? That may explain why you keep rejecting Gack for sex since two days ago?"

Luka did not answer but sent her a deadly gaze. Miku giggled before backing up and examining the driveway of the house before them. The others followed behind.

She tapped three knocks at the door.

"Good morning," said a childlike voice.

"Oh Yu-chi, hello!" Miku exclaimed raising an arm.

"Yu-chi? - Wait, that's not important. Um, look, it's very nice of you to come help us-"

"YEAH!" roared the band, except Luka.

"... Um" she sweat-dropped. "... But we will manage it easily without you. Thank you and goodbye!"

The girl slammed the door, as a small poppy twirling, leaving Miku still smiling and the others shocked.

Knock, knock, knock.  
>Len tried to stop Miku's insistence.<p>

"Hmm ... Miku-nee, if she does not want our help, we can just-"

"Bullshit, he accepted yesterday" Miku cut in, tapping harder.

The door flew open to show a very tall man in military shorts and a T-Shirt, a hand over his face. Miku, surprised, stepped back two paces. His breathing very difficult and long-drops of sweat came down on his temples, his blue hair sticking to his face.

"Um ... Hello, Shion-san?" Miku ventured, swallowing.

His eyes, behind his long pianist-fingers, flashed. Behind him, Yuki looked at them with a worried expression. She pulled on the hem of his shirt and he seemed to regain composure.  
>"Good morning ... " he croaked in a hoarse voice. "I..."<p>

"Well!" Miku exclaimed, advancing sharply, making back just as roughly. "Since you are awake, we'll start! Move your hand, will you? I can't introduce you if you hide!"

Kaito gasped and stepped back, but between, he found a wall, and he grabbed it with his free hand. Because of the emphasis gaze of this incongruous intruder, he removed his hand slowly, and everyone could admire his masculine traits. However, he dared not look at people who were facing him, and his breathing was low and hissing.

"Well-!" Miku said. "You already know me, I'm Hatsune Miku, I'm twenty years old. They," she continued, pointing with the other arm, "are my friends, and now they're yours."

Kaito blinked, stunned.

"That is very Kagamine Rin and Len, the bizarre twins-"

"HEY! WE AREN'T BIZARRE!" they exclaimed."

"Both aged eighteen years. There is Kamui Gakupo, twenty-five years, and always a feminine punk with long purple hair like a girl"

"Do I really look like a girl, Miku?" Gakupo growled.

"The super busty creature with pink hair- I mean, look at her breasts, they're so hu-"

"Miku, shut up, I beg you." Luka whistled.

"-Is Luka, twenty-four years, so is the nice ikemen next to her with hair of the same colour, his name is Yuma, he is her cousin!"

The young man nodded in greeting, his amber eyes half closed against the sun.

"And she, there, with green hair, who don't talk that much, it's Gumi!"

The girl moved her goggles- or diving glasses- behind her green bangs and smiled so gently that Kaito immediately liked her, so he mumbled something that sounded like an "hello".

"Well, since the presentations are made, we will start working on the house!" Miku shone victoriously, raising a fist.

"Wai... wait a second" Kaito whispered loud enough to be heard. He slipped away quietly, leaving Yuki alone with a bunch of adults all a little stunned by the behavior of Miku as well Kaito.

Then the same man- judged by the little tuft of blue bangs sticking out- appeared, dressed in two brown cartons, a little one on his head with two holes for his eyes and one huge for his body.

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><p>"The hammer, please, Carton Man!"<p>

"Aye" whispered a voice muffled by the brown cardboard.

Gakupo took the utensil handed to him from "Carton Man" (as he liked to call him), and hit a dozen shots on a pin, monitored by the golden eye of Yuma. Behind him, Gumi ended up in the library, while assisted by Luka. Miku took care of painting some place. It was probably the office of Kaito, as it seemed like a writer's. Kaito's bizarre behaviour had not stopped the band of friends- even if a man with a big box around his body and a box with holes on his head was not common. After making sure he could work with that thing on the head, the labour had started right away. Rin and Len then entered Yuki's room with the little girl.

Gakupo often heard Kaito swallowing at each contact, each touch. Initially, this attitude had puzzled him, and then he had become accustomed to it. Kaito would surely be very shy, that's all.

"Wait," cut Luka, at lunch, "Even someone with a morbid shyness would not go so far as to hide behind boxes!"

Kaito and Yuki had taken refuge in the kitchen, while they were eating their sandwiches in the garden, shaded by birches.

"Well," Gakupo sighed. "It doesn't bother me. He looks nice."

"And you're probably blind" Luka replied.

Rin and Len looked at each other while chewing their oranges and bananas respectively. Yuma rubbed at a spot on his shorts while Gumi took a long sip of water.

"Doesn't he look a lot like Luka?"

"What?" exclaimed the girl in question, while all others were staring at Miku. Miku smiled them. "I mean ... Remember in high school, how Luka was! She was antisocial, grumpy, never smiling ... Or sometimes fearful. I remember it like it was yesterday."

The other nodded in understanding. Gakupo smiled and agreed with her, while Luka was frowning.

"I don't remember…"

Miku gave her a cold stare, but a smile stuck on her face.

"That doesn't matter. You were like that."

Luka shrugged and returned to her tuna sandwich. Yuki suddenly rushed down into the garden, short of breath, leading carton man with her.

"Oh-Yuki! How's life?" Miku asked without departing from her smile.

Yuki replied with another smile.

"OK, I tried to drag him here, that's all."

"Apparently, you did it," Gumi exclaimed, smiling.

Kaito really liked the little green light in her eyes. He lowered his own gaze in the box and, pushed by Yuki, sitting a respectable distance anyway.

"So" began Gakupo. "Carton Man, where are you come from?"

Kaito didn't even look up.

"We're from Tokyo."

"Oh! Tokyo! Cool!" squealed the twins.

"Why did you come here?" inquired Gumi.

"Uh..." he hesitated. "For..."

_To flee._

"Work."

"You found a job here?"

"That's it," said Yuki. "And you, what do you do?"

"Ah, I am-" Gumi began.

"WAIT!" Miku cut brandishing two leeks. "I'll tell you everything!"

She got up, grabbed the leeks on each side of her belt like revolvers to a cowboy, before taking control of Gumi's hands to fix them with an inquisitive eye.

"Umm," she inhaled, looking concentrated. "Many scratches, calluses at fingers, ink stains and Blanco- whoa, your hands- they're grimy -it proves that you draw. And scratches, the cutter is used for frame-"

"She is a manga-ka?" Yuki asked.

"Correct!" Miku roars. "Only me can guess stuff by watching the hands of a person."

Yuki's eyes lit up.

"My father can tell time by looking at the sky, but you read people by looking at their hands."

"That's because I aspire to be part of the police," Miku said, bridling.

Luka put her hand on her forehead before sighing.

"Police officer?" Kaito and Yuki asked at the same time.

"Yep. Yuma is a policeman too. In fact, he's a police officer, and I want to work with him."

Kaito looked at the man with the pink hair for half a second. This half-second was enough for Yuma to dive his amber gaze into Kaito's icy blue eyeballs.

"Want to play a game, Yuki?" Miku asked.

The little girl nodded.

"I will look at the hands of everyone, giving you information, and you have to guess what they do for a living, what is their character..."

Yuki nodded again. Miku then went to Rin.

"They are sticky and smell of orange-"

"So-she-loves oranges."

"Yeah, the skin is peeling a bit and is very dry. But it is intact around the fingers."

Yuki seemed to think a little.

"I do not know for her work, but I think she puts nail polish often."

Rin nodded.

"I am still a student and I have a Baito- I work in a Convini."

Miku then took the hands of Len.

"The skin is very hard, and fingers are long enough. There are many highlighter stains."

"Uh..."

"Yes, it's a bit hard-"

"I give up."

"I mark the exams for Gakupo's university, so I highlight often the important words into the revision sheets" said Len.

Miku grabbed the hands of Gakupo.

"A small scar on his left hand, at the bottom of the thumb-and you smell like eggplant, Gack- and the skin is firm."

"So he does kendo" dropped Kaito.

"That's right I'm second-dan."

Miku grabbed Yuma hands.

"Dry, hollow at the life-lines-"

"You said earlier that he was a policeman, Miku-neesan !" Yuki laughed.

"Gosh! I had forgotten. Luka, then your turn!"

Luka frowned and she held hesitant hands to Miku who grabbed them dryly. No tenderness could be read in the eyes of two girls now.

"It smells like tuna, but the hands are rough and we see signs of burnout. There are also scratches like Gumi's and fingers are very long and there are plenty of calluses hard as a rock."

Fast, Luka drew away her hands with a strange light in her eyes.

"Uh..." Yuki hesitated.

"She's drawing with Gumi" Kaito startled them by saying the name.

"... And plays a musical instrument."

"Guitar, sometimes bass," specified Luka.

"And Luka wants to be police- right, Luka?" Gakupo intervened.

Luka nodded.

"Gumi is not yet pro, that's all ... so I help just a little."

Yuma sighed and pulled his T-shirt, a trickle of sweat running from under his hair visible.

"It is not normal," he muttered between his teeth. "It isn't March yet but it's hot like it's August ..."

"I admit," say Rin. "And it attracts too many people, it's annoying..."

"Anyway. Shall we finish to the house?" asked Gumi.

"As much finished painting above, we will make the furniture tomorrow, what do you think about it?" Gakupo intervened.

The others agreed.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Carton Man. Come here, come here!"<p>

"Uh?"

Miku laughed and pulled Kaito's arm toward her, who shuddered at the contact. She stared for a moment on the brown cardboard, before grabbing two big brushes.

"Your body is so sad! Lemme arrange it!"

_Your room is so sad! Lemme arrange it Kai!_

Kaito shook his head to clear voice that rang clear in his mind and Miku took it as a negation, but she shrugged, dipped the brush in her right hand in a paint-apple green and drew something on the cardboard that covered Kaito's body.

"Hey- Miku! What ... " Luka tried to intervene.

"Stop, Luka," said Gakupo putting a hand on her shoulder. "She needs fun."

"B ... but even ... It is very rude ... She's not twelve-years old anymore!" Luka got mad.  
>Gakupo glanced at Luka, and then returned his attention to the scene.<p>

Touching.

That was the word.

Because there was a man, two cartons on his body, one on the head with a hole for his eyes, another around the body with two holes for the arms, sitting calmly in the light that filtered through the window, and a girl with long hair turquoise who was painting on those cardboards green-apple stars, pink hearts, and her expression did not fool anyone. Her smile, gentle and kind, went with his slow movements and emotional.

Gakupo's heart sank.

Miku had been his friend for a long time since he and Luka had started dating, so ... four years-and he never had seen her happy like that.

If he remembered well, Luka told him that Miku was very happy before, not as cynical and mocking as now.

"Do you think..." he whispered, "that Miku...?"

"What?"

"Do you think she fell in love with Carton Man?"

Luka stared, and fell back a small step, before watching Miku and Kaito, always with this expression incredulous.

"Uh-...!" she gasped.

It was the last thing Luka uttered all day.

Yuki accompanied them to the doorstep, Kaito behind her. The sun was setting and the air had cooled. Kaito felt it was twenty hours. He had not looked in the mirror but Miku and Yuki had put their hearts into decorating the box.

Yuma was gone soon after a wave of the head, saying he had to quickly return patrolling tonight. Luka didn't say a single word and she kept giving a strange look of distress sometimes addressed to Miku, sometimes to him- he wondered if it was because of the carton boxes, after all, it was weird. Gumi soon left with Len- she had to take the subway and she and he lived in the same direction. Rin stood at the gate and spoke with great signs that Kaito returned timidly; from what he understood, Rin and Luka lived in the same student's room. Gakupo would accompany them in the car. Kaito liked Gakupo –Kaito gulped rarely when he was around him- when he spoke, and his hot-headed manner. A slight smile crept on his lips at the thought.

Miku stood in front of Kaito and talked happily with Yuki. After a few minutes, she had to leave because of Rin who was screaming that they'll be late so they have to go- and Gakupo and Luka went away to escort her, the mauve-haired man waving his arms in goodbye.

"Um ... Kaito croaked. Do I have to escort you at your place?"

"Useless," and he started at the comment, so Miku laughed. "I live close by. I'll walk."

"Uh..."

"I assure you it is nearby. It's the big Japanese style house."

Yuki's eyes widened.

"The one with the huge entrance?"

Miku nodded, but there was no longer smile on her face.

"Wow! You must be rich! Hey, did you put the kimono on and everything?"

"Yes, but I gotta go. Until tomorrow, Yu-chi!"

She made a few steps before turning back, and a happy smile on her lips, she exclaimed: "See you tomorrow, Carton Man!"

And Kaito: "See you tomorrow, Miss Cyan Tornado!"

She laughed while he stepped back quickly, shocked by his own audacity. When he looked, the girl was only a small turquoise point.

* * *

><p>"You did a very good job."<p>

Kaito looked up from his bowl of rice -they were sitting at the table, Yuki in front of him- and his hand froze on the sticks.

"What?"

"I mean, the boxes were weird, but you've made new friends!"

Kaito raised an eyebrow.

"Friends...?"

Yuki giggled into her glass.

"Yeah, Gumi-neesan and Miku-neesan and told me they liked you and you were a great friend! Gakupo-niisan too! And Yuma-niisan and Rin and Len-neesan the thought very much! But Luka-neesan was a bit weird at the end. I think she is sad right now!"

She raised her head and she saw her father, staring at the cardboard decorated with little apple-green stars and pink hearts, filed against the wall, a blush in his face.

_We're best friends!Buddies!_

"Friends, I do not know but friendly acquaintances, yes."

Yuki smiled.

"Acquaintances quickly become friends y'know."

Kaito smiled back.

"Sure."


	3. Honeye

**A/N : **Finally chapter 3 ! I'm so glad for all the alerts/subscriptions and reviews ;w; I'm also working on a translation, _For a Sick Boy_, par renahhchen. Don't worry, it's almost finished, so the updates for _Hikky's Daughter_ should be quicker :)

A real, big, enormous hug to **Code03x1**, still my awesome beta-reader. Go check her stories ! Also one to **Rika** ! x3 Thanks a lot for your review. It brought me tears of happiness (yeah, yeah, seriously).

Alright, I'll stop to bother you already, and hope you'll enjoy this chapter. It's shorter, and a transition before things go exciting.

**~Paru-ch4n**

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><p>Kaito got up late this morning. Yuki was awake for a long time, the absence of heat on the sheets of the futon where she had slept beside his father showed him it- and he was sitting in shorts and T-Shirt. Slowly, he rose to take pants but finally heard loud shouts in the garden that made him jump. He dressed hastily in his decorated cartons and opened the door.<p>

Luka kept idly severe look as she tapped her foot, followed closely by the other-while Yuki seemed encamped on both legs, frowning in front of Luka- who was almost three times the size of the six-year old girl.  
>"Uh ...!" he gasped.<br>All heads turned toward him.  
>And all eyes went wide.<br>Some blushed.  
>"Uh ... Carton Man," tried Gakupo." Looks like you forgot to put on pants this morning."<br>Kaito yelped when he saw his patterned Haagen-Daas short. His face turned in tomato-shape and he retreated back- before coming back, dressed up, still with his cartons.  
>"Hahaha !" laughed Miku and the twins, hands holding her stomach. "What a spectacle!" Under his box, Kaito blushed deeply.<br>"Now, lazy ass, go to work!" exclaimed Gakupo.  
>Luka replaced a pink bang behind her ears, eyebrows still in frown. Then, in a haughty step, she rushed into the house, followed by her friends.<p>

* * *

><p>"Luka, grumpy mode, and Carton Man, super shy!"<br>Luka did not answer.  
>"I mean, look," continued Miku, between chuckles, "her eyebrows are so wrinkled that it would be enough of a millimetre so that they can converge completely!"<br>A very large hammer blow dealt by Luka abruptly cut the laughter. She sent them a deadly gaze, and all eyes turned away.  
>Except Miku.<br>The cyan haired girl supported Luka's icy stare unflinchingly. The tension was palpable. Gakupo tried to intervene on hearing Kaito swallow.  
>"Say, girls ..."<br>But a finger crunch drove him away. It was really scary. It was like the start of a fight of girls. Len let out a nervous laugh and grabbed the sleeve of Miku, who finally looked away. Yuki munched an apple that Gumi had kindly brought.  
>"So, now that we finished painting," Rin exclaimed, "what should we do?"<br>"I guess the remaining furniture to finish, and then it's over, unless you want us to do the garden?  
>"Err-... uh, yes," stammered Kaito.<br>He was very hot in the box. With trembling hands, he removed the cardboard and blinked in the sun. Yuki looked at him, eyes wide, a piece of apple on the lips. She didn't make a comment anyway. Gakupo laid his hand on Kaito's shoulder, made him startled, but he didn't flinch.  
>"Why don't we separate in groups? The boys on the furniture and girls of the garden?" suggested the man with purple hair.<br>"I'm sturdy, I will help for furniture, Gack." Gumi said.  
>The other nodded.<p>

* * *

><p>The doors of the house open, the girls watched from the corner of their eyes boy's progress, from time to time by a relevant comment. Luka constantly advanced with a shovel on her shoulder, without departing from her grumbling expressions.<br>"She is in a bad mood," Miku sighed. "I bet what you want, Rin, she is menstruating."  
>"How do you prove that?" asked the blonde.<br>"The fact that Gakupo no longer comes to your house proves everything."  
>Rin grinned.<br>"To be honest, I think it's a good thing."  
>"Why?"<br>"Oh! They make too much noise ..." "Oh, it's ... Yuck. Is Luka noisy ?"  
>"I would say it is Gack is deafening! Whenever he comes, if you understand the innuendo, the walls are shaking!"<br>The two women laughed mockingly. Luka, who had heard and felt her cheeks get hot, began to throw dust on the two girls who ran away screaming and teasing.  
>"It's lively, outside." Gumi exclaimed, laughing.<br>"They're truly little kids" sighed Len while turning the screwdriver.  
>"Your daughter seems to enjoy, hey." noticed Gakupo while rubbing the hair of Kaito.<br>At first, Kaito felt his shoulders tense, but he got used to Gakupo's contact. It was reassuring. Now, a thin smile stretched his lips.  
>Yuma gave a final blow of a hammer.<br>"Oh yeah ! Finished!" cried Gumi. "Where do we have to place it?"  
>"Right there," says Kaito.<br>"It's gonna be heavy for just four of us. Call girls." decreed Yuma.  
>Gakupo nodded and shouted the name of his friends. They came in screaming, Luka with an expression of pure rage, Rin and Miku, a mischievous look and face covered with dust. They laughed even more at surprised expression of Gakupo, who eventually shrugged and explained the situation.<br>"This furniture is too heavy. We post sides to distribute the weight, and then we lift it. Ok?"  
>The operation was a bit complicated to manage, but ultimately, the furniture was leaning against the wall. The largest site was empty, where Kaito would file TV. Kaito, stretching after exercise, placed the cardboard against the wall. Feeling that he had to say something, he pronounced a sentence that burned his throat and tongue.<br>"T ... thank you all ...-The home is now complete-"  
>Miku and Gakupo smiled with all their teeth, and at the same time, they clapped their hand in his back.<br>"But it was only natural, Carton Man!"  
>"Yeah, man! Don't hesitate to call us!"<br>"Say, for that matter, Yuma is not in service tonight, you can invite us to the restaurant?" Len suggested, a finger on the lip.  
>"Err-... uh, I do not think it is ... a good idea."<br>"In this case, Dad, why not invite them to eat here?"  
>Kaito looked at Yuki. She seemed to want; he shook his head.<br>"Eat here ... We will do one to one real treat."  
>Miku smiled.<p>

* * *

><p>While Gumi worked on a carrot cake for dessert, Kaito was rummaging in cardboard case, assisted by Gakupo, Yuma and Luka. From time to time, he raised an object and gazed with interested and curious gaze, as if he was seeing the it for the first time. Yuma came out whereas a baseball glove with the bat.<br>"Oh! exclaimed Gakupo. This is an old glove, look! Yuma!"  
>Yuma hefted the worn leather glove, and a gentle smile stretched his thin lips. He turned to Kaito.<br>"Well, Shion-san ..."  
>Kaito as Gakupo jumped. Kaito by habit and Gakupo because he hardly remembered the name of the Carton Man.<br>"Where's the ball?"  
>"I ... I think we don't have it anymore."<br>The twinkle in Yuma's honey-eyes died in an instant. Luka then put a hand on the shoulder of her cousin.  
>"Wait, Yuma, I will ask the neighbour across the street-side. He plays in the K high school team, remember.<br>"No, but it's not…" the young man tried, but Luka interrupted him with a gesture.  
>"I know you want it, Yuma ... So I want, too," she said with a smile. "It itches me to see you play again."<br>Gakupo folded his arms, while both Kaito and Yuma raised an eyebrow. Luka got up in a graceful motion and left the room. Kaito, a question on the lips, prevaricated few seconds before finally asking the question.  
>"... Yuma-san, do you play baseball?"<br>The same smile that once stretched Luka's lips gave its way on the face of his cousin. He stroked a nostalgic glove, and then shrugged.  
>"Before. I stopped at the end of the university. Do you like it?" he asked.<br>"Err-it must be Yuki who slipped the glove into the cartons. She loved to play before."  
>"Before? Her, too ?"<br>"Finally ... I do not know."  
>Gakupo shook his head.<br>"You should play with her, you know. It would please her."  
>"Hey, guys!" cried Luka.<br>She had just roll into the room, treading the ground with her light feet. In her hand, en-gloved by the large brown leather, stood a tight baseball ball.  
>"He lent them to me with kindness. Let's go play, Yuma, I wanna play!"<br>Yuma smiled when he saw Luka stamping with impatience. She hopped around and bit her lip. It was quite interesting, for Kaito, to seeing Luka in that state, knowing her cold and quiet nature as her cousin. Without his realizing it, the same infectious smile of Yuma had settled on his face.  
>"You stay a little girl," Yuma sighed with amusement as he rose. "Did you miss my play at this point?"<br>Luka blushed and crossed his arms, trying somehow to regain control of her image. Yuma walked in the garden, the bat on his shoulder.  
>"Gack, do you want to be the starter?" proposed Yuma.<br>"I... I want to do well the recipient!" Kaito intervened.  
>He bit his lip, shocked by his own audacity. Yuma nodded and handed him the glove, while Gakupo seized one set by Luka.<br>Suddenly, a small brown head with pigtails hopped on the "field", surprising everyone. It was Yuki.  
>"I want to play, too! Luka, let me play!"<br>Luka raised an eyebrow, and after a knowing look with Yuma, agreed.  
>Kaito crouched and waited for Yuma to position, looking out the silhouette of the man with purple hair patting his thighs. Then, a large movement, Gakupo threw the ball, stretching forward his whole body. Yuma gave a great blow twith bat and the ball landed against a wall. Luka pick it up and gave it back to Gakupo before backing up. Yuma and Gakupo sometimes changed places. Generally, when Yuma was pitcher, Kaito received the ball a little more, and cried most enthusiastic as possible "Strike! ". Gakupo swore then, saying that "he lacked training." Yuki, with her chubby, little hands and laughter, was warming the atmosphere. She grabbed the bat, which was almost bigger than her, and with unexpected force, nearly had a home-run. The sun was setting slowly, and the four young adults continued to play until they almost didn't see the ball. Len then approached. He had participated in the cooking, even though his expression was clear he would rather play, too. He explained between the whistling balls it was time to eat. Unhurriedly, they settled around the table freshly installed. Rin handed a beer to Gakupo who went down to the liquid in one shot.<br>"Yuck, I don't understand how you can love something so bitter!" exclaimed both Yuki and Rin simultaneously.  
>"You would not understand, hobbit," laughed Gakupo while patting her head. "It's a pleasure for adults."<br>"H-hobbit ?" Rin cried, red with shame. I'm eighteen, dammit!"  
>"You stay a little girl, Rin-chan~" Miku teased.<br>"Oh, shut up, Miku! I-I ... Luka!" Rin cried, in despair.  
>But Luka only smirked.<br>"Ara, Rin. What do you want me to say? They are right! You're still a kiddo"  
>Len laughed at the discomfiture of his sister, until she sinks him a kick in the belly. Gumi held out the dishes. Kaito waited politely and served rice and remaining fried vegetables and other . It was delicious, and he was about to say when Yuki had him in his place, an expression of pure bliss on her face.<br>It took a little while before realizing that he had sipped his pint of beer almost naturally, and that Miku had sat next to him.

* * *

><p>The rest of the evening was still disjointed.<br>He knew that everyone was still standing until very late, about three o'clock in the morning. Yuki had fallen asleep on her lap, and Miku, against his shoulder. He remembered Miku had kissed him on the cheek, and he laughed, a little awkward, like a young teenager. This Tornado Cyan, decidedly. She smelled honey and apples. And this, despite the exorbitant amount of leeks that she could swallow. He remembered the icy stare of Luka, ice that melted quickly when Gakupo had brought Miku and putting her in Kaito's bed, while boys had filed futons in the living room and fell asleep in the summer heat. He remembered the sweetness of sugar, caused by Gumi's carrot cake, and laughter of the latter, saying he was nice.  
>He had felt happy and light. As a champagne bubble ...<p>

And it was since so long he never felt like that…

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><p><strong>Review ? ;D<strong>


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